BY SAMMY JULIAN
OFFICIALS at the Philippine Embassy in Washington DC are scratching their heads in bewilderment as to why only a few undocumented Filipino youths have taken advantage of the opportunity made available for them to temporarily stay and find work in the United States under the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
Under the DACA program which was announced in June 2012, undocumented aliens who came to the United States as children and meet several key guidelines may request consideration of deferred action by immigration authorities for a period of two years, subject to renewal, and would then be eligible for work authorization.
Based on figures from both the Migration Policy Institute and the latest quarterly report of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), as of March this year only 4,041 Filipinos have applied for DACA and of this number, 3,644 have been approved. The Migration Policy Institute placed the estimated eligible Filipino youth population at around 20,000.
These numbers constitute a small percentage of the estimated number of Filipino eligible youths and while there has been a gradual increase in the number of applications since August 2013, after the program reached its one-year mark, little progress has been made.
It is indeed unfortunate that majority of undocumented Filipino youths across the US continue to shy away from the DACA program even though they are eligible.
To solve this problem, the Philippine embassy announced that it will step up its campaign for DACA awareness among the Filipino-American communities.
There is now also a need to advise “DACAmented” Filipinos about the need to request a renewal of their status between four to five months prior to their expiration date to avoid a lapse of their DACA, and subsequently, their work authorization.
However, given the enormous problems confronting the Obama administration with regards to its current immigration policy, it is not surprising that few undocumented Filipino-American youths are taking advantage of the benefits that DACA is offering.
The policy itself is being criticized by US lawmakers. According to critics, the DACA program has led to catastrophic results, because it was declaring to the world that America won’t enforce its immigration laws against those who enter the country as minors. They claimed that the policy actually unleashed a flood of new illegal immigration into America.
On top of this, they warned that President Barack Obama’s immigration strategy – his plan to legalize over five million illegal aliens through executive power – could destroy America.
In fact, a bill has been filed at the US Senate that would block President Obama from granting amnesty to illegal immigrants through DACA.
According to the bill’s proponent, Sen. Ted Cruz, the “right answer” to the immigration problem is to block any future deferred action orders by Obama.
Frankly, undocumented Filipino-Americans are aware of DACA and know exactly what it offers. What is keeping them from applying is that they are apprehensive about the policy, considering the criticisms DACA has been receiving.
No amount of information campaign will erase that fear./PN
